Case Digest (G.R. No. 194490-91)
Facts:
In Transocean Ship Management (Phils.), Inc., Carlos S. Salinas, and General Marine Services Corporation v. Inocencio B. Vedad, G.R. Nos. 194490-91, 194518 & 194524, March 20, 2013, the Supreme Court, Velasco, Jr., J., writing for the Court (Peralta, Abad, Mendoza, and Leonen, JJ., concurring).Inocencio B. Vedad (Inocencio) was employed as second engineer under a POEA-Standard Employment Contract for a 10-month term (June 1, 2005–March 1, 2006) by local manning agency Transocean Ship Management (Phils.), Inc. (Transocean) for principal General Marine Services Corporation, whose president was Carlos S. Salinas. After a pre-employment medical exam cleared him, Inocencio boarded M/V Invicta but became ill while at sea in February 2006 with fever, sore throat and ear pain; shipboard and foreign-port treatment occurred and he was repatriated on February 19, 2006 for further care.
Upon return Inocencio reported to the company-designated physician, Dr. Nicomedes G. Cruz, and later underwent tonsillectomy on May 10, 2006; histopathology revealed undifferentiated carcinoma of the right tonsil. Transocean and General Marine allegedly promised to shoulder chemotherapy and related treatment (estimated at PhP 500,000) but failed to do so in full; Inocencio commenced medical procedures but could not continue because the employers did not provide funds. On July 17, 2006 he filed a complaint before the Labor Arbiter seeking, inter alia, permanent total disability benefits and sickness allowance (docketed NLRC NCR OFW Case No. (M) 06-97-02117-00).
The Labor Arbiter (Aug. 10, 2007) awarded Inocencio US$60,000 as permanent total disability plus 10% attorney’s fees, applying Section 20 of the POEA-SEC and presuming the illness work-related because it lasted more than 120 days. On appeal, the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) (May 29, 2008) vacated the Labor Arbiter and instead awarded only sickness allowance equivalent to 120 days (US$4,616) and ordered payment/reimbursement of medical expenses, relying on the June 9, 2006 certification of the company physician Dr. Cruz that the tonsillar cancer was not work-related and finding Inocencio failed to rebut that certification.
Both parties appealed to the Court of Appeals (CA). The CA (July 28, 2010) modified the NLRC by setting aside the sickness allowance award but affirmed the order to reimburse medical expenses, ...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the Court of Appeals commit grave abuse of discretion in ordering Transocean, Salinas, and General Marine to pay or reimburse Inocencio’s medical expenses?
- Was Inocencio entitled to sickness allowance under Section 20(B) of the POEA-SEC despite the company-designated physician’s later certification that his tonsillar carcinoma was not work-related?
- Was Inocencio entitled to permanent total disability benefits and attorney’s fees giv...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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